Chapter 90

If possible, please put the book on the shelf. It will be convenient for you and supportive of me. Thank you very much!

On September 1st, the day of registration, for third-year students, it was just another ordinary day; they closed the doors and continued their classes as usual.

For the new first-year students, it was a day of novelty and excitement, a new school, new teachers, new classmates... a new beginning.

For Feng Yiping and his fellow second-year students, this was the last registration day of junior high where they wouldn't have a proper class. Their main task today was to pay the miscellaneous fees at the finance office and then clean up.

Feng Yiping arrived at school in the morning, paid the tuition, greeted Xiao Zhijie and Wang Changning, and then, taking advantage of the cover of the new students registering, he ran out of the school. One less laborer wouldn't make much difference.

Back in his small house, he started stewing braised pork, prepared a few other dishes, and took the opportunity to check the sheet music he had written down. This was crucial for opening a store in the provincial capital, and he couldn't afford to make any mistakes.

He liked to stew the braised pork for a longer time. After more than two hours, he added a handful of green vegetables and a little salt, then turned up the heat to reduce the sauce. Done!

He tasted a few pieces; they were slightly sweet, melting in the mouth, and not greasy at all. Not bad!

Next, he stir-fried some twice-cooked tofu, chili and egg, and when he was cooking the enoki mushroom soup, he heard Xiao Zhijie calling from outside.

As soon as he entered, he took a deep breath, "Wow, it smells so good!" and ran into the kitchen.

Wang Changning followed behind, carrying a black plastic bag filled with shelled peanuts, at least a liter.

Feng Yiping didn't fuss over formalities, took the bag, and showed him around the room. In the other bedroom, the bunk beds were set up, just waiting for him to move in.

Xiao Zhijie, the foodie, took a bowl and picked up a few pieces of braised pork, "Your skills are really good. The soup is ready too. What are you waiting for? Let's eat!"

Since they couldn't drink alcohol, they had soda instead. There were no extra words; as soon as everyone sat down, they started eating. The first to be grabbed was the braised pork. This kind of pure stewed meat was only available during the New Year when the pigs were slaughtered.

Teenagers in their growth spurt indeed had a huge appetite. They finished over two pounds of braised pork, and the tofu and eggs were also gone. Only some of the enoki mushroom soup remained, thanks to the two large bottles of soda they drank.

The three of them lay lazily on the sofa, patting their full bellies. Feng Yiping kicked Xiao Zhijie, "Go wash the dishes."

Xiao Zhijie kicked Wang Changning, "Old Wang, you go. I washed them a few days ago."

"A few days ago, I wasn't here either."

Since classes hadn't started yet, they all had excess energy and were good at bickering.

In the end, Feng Yiping decided, "You two play rock-paper-scissors, one round to decide."

Wang Changning's luck wasn't good; he lost to Xiao Zhijie's paper with his rock.

Xiao Zhijie watched him walk into the kitchen with a sly smile, feeling quite happy. But then he sighed, "Ah, if only we had a TV."

"Don't even think about a TV. I'll buy a tape recorder in a few days. You can listen to music and learn English."

Without a TV, computer, or internet, it was actually quite good. Feng Yiping knew he wasn't a person with strong willpower. If there were too many external temptations, he would definitely slack off. During this foundational period, it was better to stay focused.

He didn't have to go to school in the afternoon, but he had to attend the evening study session because Wang Yumin would definitely be there. If he didn't show up for a whole day, it would really challenge her limits.

Wang Yumin's speech in the evening was nothing new, emphasizing the importance of studying and the urgency of time. As expected, these words would continue to be repeated for the remaining two years.

At around nine o'clock, Feng Yiping rode his bike back to the village under the starlight. After about ten minutes, he returned to the village.

The village was very quiet, with most people already asleep. Only a few windows still had lights on.

In the silence, the chirping of insects in the grass by the roadside was barely audible. The occasional bark from a distance made the quiet night even more lonely.

Hearing his own monotonous and lonely footsteps, Feng Yiping felt a bit uneasy. There were few working lights in the hallway, so he climbed the stairs in the dark, stomping hard on each step to give himself courage. He opened the door, turned on the light, and then closed the door.

Once inside, he relaxed, took a shower, and soaked his clothes in a basin. In the bedroom, he wrote another section of his novel. At ten-thirty, he went to bed on time.

On September 2nd, the school, which had been chaotic the day before, quickly returned to normal. With the sound of the morning bell, the new semester officially began.

Feng Yiping got up at six in the morning, made a bowl of egg noodles, and while eating, boiled two more eggs to bring to the two guys.

At half past six, he rode his bike to school. The building was still quiet, with most people still asleep.

At 6:45, he entered the classroom, and the boarding students hadn't returned from their morning run yet. A few minutes later, the main group ran into the school, followed by the principal's speech on the playground. After the speech, the students dispersed in groups of three or five, heading to their classrooms.

After school at noon, he hurriedly rode back to the village, cooked the rice, and stir-fried some green beans. Seeing the rice wasn't ready, he went to sleep for an hour. After waking up, he washed his face, ate two bowls of rice, and then arrived at school before one-thirty, feeling refreshed.

In the afternoon, he went home with the Wang Yumin couple. Teacher Zhu rode his bicycle with Feng Yiping, while Wang Yumin rode Feng Yiping's mountain bike with Xiao Yanzi sitting on the front bar.

After entering the house, Wang Yumin checked her watch, "Almost fifteen minutes."

Teacher Zhu took a look around and said, "Your place is even better than ours!"

Wang Yumin then checked the books on Feng Yiping's desk, opened the drawers, and even peeked under the bed. Seeing no miscellaneous books or other distracting items, she nodded in satisfaction.

This was a surprise visit, and Feng Yiping hadn't known about it in advance, so he couldn't have prepared. It seemed he was indeed a child who could be trusted, just as his mother had said.

Since they were there, Feng Yiping decided to keep them for dinner. There were plenty of dishes in the kitchen over the past two days.

Wang Yumin took charge of the cooking, with Teacher Zhu helping. Feng Yiping took Xiao Yanzi to a small store on the street to buy milk and ice cream.

Wang Yumin's cooking was quite good, with a light taste, perhaps because of Xiao Yanzi. Feng Yiping knew that Teacher Zhu preferred a slightly salty and spicy flavor.

At the dinner table, Wang Yumin mentioned that things were fine now, but next month, when the midday break was canceled, the thirty-minute round trip plus cooking would make the noon rush.

Feng Yiping had already thought about it. When the weather cooled down, he could prepare the dishes in advance, bring them to school in a thermal container in the morning, and eat at school at noon.

However, his request to skip the evening study session was flatly rejected by Wang Yumin. She said that in case of heavy rain or snow, he could ask for leave.

He knew it wouldn't be that easy and needed to find a way to get her to agree.

Thank you all for your support! A big thank you to book friend 199104 for the tip!

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